Why is the Orange County chemical tank crisis so hard to fix?
Key takeaways
- That could enable crews to implement some solutions that don’t involve an explosion or destructive leak.
- Inside the tank is an estimated 7,000 gallons of a chemical used to make plastics called methyl methacrylate, or MMA, stored in liquid form.
- “It’s durable, lightweight, transparent, so it could even be used as a substitute for glass,” Elias Picazo, assistant professor of chemistry at USC, said of the final plastic product.
Fire officials are trying to figure out how to keep a chemical tank from leaking or exploding in Garden Grove. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times) By Rong-Gong Lin II and Hannah Fry May 23, 2026 3 AM PT Share via Close extra sharing options Email Facebook X Linked In Threads Reddit Whats App Copy Link URL Copied! Print p]:text-cms-story-body-color-text clearfix mb-10 md:max-w-170 md:mx-auto" data-subscriber-content> A large, pressurized tank filled with a toxic chemical in Orange County is at risk of either exploding or leaking, and officials say their options are highly limited.
By Friday night, fire crews were making progress lowering the temperature of the chemical tank, which is down to around 61 degrees, with 50 degrees being the goal, Craig Covey, an Orange County Fire Authority division chief, said.
That could enable crews to implement some solutions that don’t involve an explosion or destructive leak. But there is still a ways to go before the area is safe for people to return.